Little Traverse Conservancy
Ecological Conditions and Response Program
Ecological Inventorying
How can we best care for the 68,000+ acres of land within our care? By learning what is our responsibility to protect. With a deeper understanding of the resources within these lands, we can better steward them into the future. A new program of LTC’s Stewardship Department aims to do just that. Through a multi-year process with expert staff* and partners, LTC will identify, record, and develop a plan for the unique and special natural features we discover. The work we do now will inform how we do our work at a high level to protect wild spaces forever.
Phase I Complete!
As of 2025, our ECAR Program has inventoried all habitats at every LTC nature preserve and working forest reserve. This process was comprehensive and eye-opening for us and will be invaluable as we create individualized plans to care for our lands in the future. If you would like to continue to see ECAR thrive, please click the donate button below.
Thank you to the donors who make this program possible:
Americana Foundation
Charlevoix County Community
Foundation
Cherry Republic
Dr. Daryl Van Tongeren and Sara Showalter Van Tongeren
Dragonfly Fund/Liesel Litzenburger Meijer
Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act Grants Program
Jeff and Mary Read
Jerry and Eileen Fhaner
Josette Lory and John McLeod
Karie Slavik
Kathleen and Diana Medrano
Land Trust Alliance
Michael and Debbie Esposito
Fernanda and Brian Fisher
Mrs. Ann K. Irish
Ms. Mary K. McIntire
Oliver and Cunningham Family Foundation
Pamela K Schooley
Steven and Julie Ann Wang
The Highlands
meet our staff who make this program possible:
Quinn Sommer
With the first phase of inventorying wrapped up, we can now move forward to Phase II: processing and assessing the findings by examining the mapped habitat boundaries (see Woollam Habitat Map). Continue scrolling to learn more about these maps and how we will use them in our work.
Woollam Habitat Map
Each stand was assigned a qualitative Health Score between 1 and 5, with a score of 1 signifying low ecological quality or poor health and a 5 being a high-quality and healthy habitat. Scores of 1 to 2.5 were classified as Marginal Habitats, 3 to 3.5 as Functional Habitats, and scores of 4 to 5 as Intact Habitats. To determine the Health Score of a habitat, the evaluators, from LTC and Michigan Natural Features Inventory (MNFI) staff, looked at the composition, structure, and any impairments. For example, at the Woollam Family Nature Preserve, an old home site with a driveway has impaired the habitat health of one of the stands (see 1. Ecological Health Map below). The stands were then assigned a Trend Score, which is the best professional judgment on the level of a threat in or near the stand that would lead to deteriorating quality (see 2. Trend Status Map below).
1. Ecological Health Map
2. Trend Status Map
The Health Score and Trend Score are used to calculate a Response Priority. There are three response categories: Low, Moderate, and High. This score helps us prioritize our stewardship management response. If a property has a high Health Score and a Trend Score that is deteriorating due to a factor impacting the health of the habitat, this habitat would receive a high Response Priority Score.
At the Woollam Family Nature Preserve (see 3. Response Priority right), the high-quality open dune habitat has moderate-level threats such as encroaching invasive species and high foot traffic from human visitors. Therefore, these areas become higher priorities for management activities such as vegetation management and managing visitor use to minimize trampling.
3. Response Priority Map
The outcome of the ECAR program is to develop management responses (the “R” in ECAR). The maps help us evaluate the data, which reveals that though the overall health of the Woollam Family Nature Preserve is intact, or good, it is at risk of degrading due to the previously mentioned invasive species and high use. As we create a management response for this preserve, we will give more attention to preventing and controlling invasive species and implementing trail features to mitigate erosion or habitat loss due to trail use. This program is producing immediate results and building a foundation so that future stewards will have a vital baseline to measure and understand the health of our lands.